Explosion in Gas Pipeline Between Israel and Egypt
The Al Jazeera network reported on Sunday evening that unknown armed men blew up part of the Israeli-Egyptian gas pipeline.
According to the report, which has not been confirmed by Egyptian officials, the explosion occurred in the Bir Al-Abd Mediterranean coastal region of northern Sinai.
The Israeli Ministry of Energy is investigating the report.
The Leviathan partnership said in response that there was no damage to the EMG gas conduit system connecting Israel and Egypt, and no damage was done to the systems that are moving the gas from Leviathan.
The flow of gas from Leviathan to Egypt continues as usual, the company stressed.
Israel began pumping natural gas to Egypt for the first time earlier this month under a $15 billion, 15-year deal to liquefy it and re-export it to Europe.
It is the first time that Egypt, which in 1979 became the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Israel, has imported gas from its neighbor.
Egypt’s petroleum ministry and the Israeli energy ministry hailed an “important development that serves the economic interests of both countries”.
It enables “Israel to transfer quantities of its natural gas to Europe through Egyptian liquefied natural gas (LNG) plants,” the statement added.
